U.S. patent application number 16/912713 was filed with the patent office on 2020-12-31 for vehicle air conditioner and vehicle.
The applicant listed for this patent is TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA. Invention is credited to Masashi HOTTA, Shunsuke SHIGETA.
Application Number | 20200406720 16/912713 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000004939218 |
Filed Date | 2020-12-31 |
United States Patent
Application |
20200406720 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
HOTTA; Masashi ; et
al. |
December 31, 2020 |
VEHICLE AIR CONDITIONER AND VEHICLE
Abstract
Air conditioning units each include an evaporator, a blower fan,
a compressor that compresses a coolant, a condenser that causes
heat exchange between the coolant and outside air, a coolant pipe
that causes the coolant to circulate, and a spray nozzle that
sprays water in a mist form to the outside air flowing to the
condenser. The evaporator and the blower fan are provided in a
ceiling portion of the vehicle, and the condenser and the spray
nozzle are provided in a lower portion of the vehicle.
Inventors: |
HOTTA; Masashi; (Nagoya-shi,
JP) ; SHIGETA; Shunsuke; (Toyota-shi, JP) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA |
Aichi-Ken |
|
JP |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000004939218 |
Appl. No.: |
16/912713 |
Filed: |
June 26, 2020 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B60H 1/3228 20190501;
B60H 1/00764 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B60H 1/32 20060101
B60H001/32; B60H 1/00 20060101 B60H001/00 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Jun 28, 2019 |
JP |
2019-121186 |
Claims
1. A vehicle air conditioner installed in a vehicle, the vehicle
air conditioner comprising at least one air conditioning unit,
wherein each of the air conditioning units includes: an evaporator
that causes heat exchange between air in an interior of a passenger
compartment and a coolant; a blower fan that generates an air flow
from the interior of the passenger compartment, the air flow
passing through the evaporator and returning to the interior of the
passenger compartment; a compressor that compresses the coolant; a
condenser that causes heat exchange between the coolant and outside
air; a coolant pipe that causes the coolant to circulate through
the evaporator, the compressor, and the condenser; and a spray
nozzle that sprays water in a mist form to the outside air flowing
to the condenser, wherein the evaporator and the blower fan are
provided in a ceiling portion of the vehicle, and the condenser and
the spray nozzle are provided in a lower portion of the
vehicle.
2. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1, wherein the
air conditioning unit further includes: a water tank that is
provided under a floor of the passenger compartment and stores
water; and a water pump that supplies the water in the water tank
to the spray nozzle.
3. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 2, wherein the
air conditioning unit further includes a drain hose through which
water condensed by the evaporator is guided to the water tank.
4. The vehicle air conditioner according to claim 1 further
comprising: a front side air conditioning unit for air conditioning
on a front side of the passenger compartment and a rear side air
conditioning unit for air conditioning on a rear side of the
passenger compartment, wherein the condenser and the spray nozzle
of the front side air conditioning unit are provided in a front
side accommodation space positioned at a lower front corner portion
of the vehicle, and the condenser and the spray nozzle of the rear
side air conditioning unit are provided in a rear side
accommodation space positioned in a lower rear corner portion of
the vehicle.
5. A vehicle in which a vehicle air conditioner is installed, the
vehicle being an electric vehicle comprising: a power unit
including a drive motor that causes the vehicle to travel; and a
battery that stores power to drive the drive motor, the vehicle air
conditioner comprising at least one air conditioning unit, wherein
each of the air conditioning units includes: an evaporator that
causes heat exchange between air in an interior of a passenger
compartment and a coolant; a blower fan that generates an air flow
from the interior of the passenger compartment, the air flow
passing through the evaporator and returning to the interior of the
passenger compartment; a compressor that compresses the coolant; a
condenser that causes heat exchange between the coolant and outside
air; a coolant pipe that causes the coolant to circulate through
the evaporator, the compressor, and the condenser; and a spray
nozzle that sprays water in a mist form to the outside air flowing
to the condenser, the evaporator and the blower fan are provided in
a ceiling portion of the vehicle, and the condenser and the spray
nozzle are provided in a lower portion of the vehicle.
6. The vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the vehicle has a
substantially box shape with a front end and a rear end extending
in a substantially vertical direction from a bottom part to a
ceiling of the vehicle, and the vehicle is able to be autonomously
driven.
7. The vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the vehicle air
conditioner includes a front side air conditioning unit for air
conditioning on a front side of the passenger compartment and a
rear side air conditioning unit for air conditioning on a rear side
of the passenger compartment, the condenser and the spray nozzle of
the front side air conditioning unit are provided in a front side
accommodation space positioned between a pair of front wheels of
the vehicle, the condenser and the spray nozzle of the rear side
air conditioning unit are provided in a rear side accommodation
space positioned between a pair of rear wheels of the vehicle, in
the rear side accommodation space, the power unit and a radiator
that cools a motor coolant for cooling the power unit are further
arranged, and the radiator and the condenser of the rear side air
conditioning unit are vertically arranged.
8. The vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the vehicle has a
lower end of at least one of a front end surface and a rear end
surface provided with a grill through which the outside air is able
to pass, the condenser is provided to face the grill in a forward
and rearward direction, and the grill has an upper end positioned
lower than a center of the condenser in a height direction.
9. A vehicle comprising: a main battery provided under a floor of a
center part of a passenger compartment; and one or more air
conditioning units that perform air conditioning in the passenger
compartment, wherein each of the air conditioning units includes:
an evaporator that causes heat exchange between air in an interior
of a passenger compartment and a coolant; a blower fan that
generates an air flow from the interior of the passenger
compartment, the air flow passing through the evaporator and
returning to the interior of the passenger compartment; a
compressor that compresses the coolant; a condenser that causes
heat exchange between the coolant and outside air; and a coolant
pipe that causes the coolant to circulate through the evaporator,
the compressor, and the condenser; the evaporator and the blower
fan are provided in a ceiling portion of the vehicle, and the
condenser and the compressor are provided in at least one of a
front side accommodation space positioned at a lower front corner
portion of the vehicle and a rear side accommodation space
positioned in a lower rear corner portion of the vehicle.
10. The vehicle according to claim 9, further comprising a
peripheral information sensor that is provided on an outer surface
of the ceiling of the vehicle and detects information about a
periphery of the vehicle, wherein the vehicle has at least an
autonomous driving function or a driver assistance function with
which traveling of the vehicle is controlled based on the
information detected by the peripheral information sensor.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority to Japanese Patent
Application No. 2019-121186 filed on Jun. 28, 2019, which is
incorporated herein by reference in its entirety including the
specification, claims, drawings, and abstract.
TECHNICAL FIELD
[0002] The present specification discloses a vehicle air
conditioner installed in a vehicle and a vehicle equipped with the
vehicle air conditioner.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Conventionally, vehicles equipped with an air conditioner
have been widely known.
[0004] As a matter of course, the vehicle air conditioner is driven
by power from a vehicle battery installed in the vehicle.
Conventionally, there has been demand for reduction of power
consumption of the vehicle air conditioner, in consideration of the
limited power of the vehicle battery.
[0005] In view of this, some proposed air conditioners employ the
following configuration to reduce the power consumed during
cooling. Specifically, mist (water) is injected to a portion near a
compressor performing heat exchange between a coolant and outside
air. With the heat of vaporization of the mist, cooling efficiency
of the coolant is improved, along with that of the air
conditioner.
[0006] For example, JP 9-207542 A discloses an integrated air
conditioner for a vehicle including a spray nozzle that sprays
condensed water, generated by an evaporator, to a condenser. In JP
9-207542 A, a compressor, a condenser, a throttle valve, the
evaporator, the spray nozzle, and the like are all housed in the
same case to be unitized. The unitized air conditioner is disposed
on the outdoor ceiling portion of the vehicle. With the mist
injected to the compressor as in JP 9-207542 A, further improvement
of the cooling efficiency can be achieved.
[0007] The arrangement of the air conditioner on the ceiling as in
JP 9-207542 A is effective for lowering a passenger compartment
floor while arranging the battery under the passenger compartment
floor. However, the ceiling provided with an air conditioner
including a condenser inevitably has a large size. This is
particularly true in the case of JP 9-207542 A in which almost all
the components of the air conditioner are housed in a single case.
In this case, it is only natural that the case would have a large
size. Thus, when such a case is provided in the ceiling portion
outside the passenger compartment, the design freedom of the
ceiling portion of the vehicle is extremely limited. On top of
that, the compressor is a heavy object, and thus arrangement of the
compressor on the ceiling leads to a higher center of gravity of
the vehicle, compromising the stability of the vehicle. In cases of
driving support vehicles and autonomous driving vehicles where
dynamic driving tasks are entirely or partially executed on the
vehicle side, a peripheral information sensor that detects
information about the periphery of the vehicle is provided on the
ceiling and the like of the vehicle. In this case, when the ceiling
portion of the vehicle partially protrudes upward due to the air
conditioner, the attachment position of the peripheral information
sensor is limited. In order to suppress such a partial protrusion
of the vehicle ceiling, the air conditioner may protrude into the
passenger compartment instead of protruding toward the outside of
the passenger compartment. However, this may result in the
passenger compartment having a low ceiling, which makes passengers
feel confined.
[0008] In view of this, the present specification discloses a
vehicle air conditioner and a vehicle that can further improve the
degree of freedom of vehicle design.
SUMMARY
[0009] A vehicle air conditioner disclosed herein is a vehicle air
conditioner installed in a vehicle and includes at least one air
conditioning unit. The air conditioning unit includes:
[0010] an evaporator that causes heat exchange between air in an
interior of a passenger compartment and a coolant; a blower fan
that generates an air flow from the interior of the passenger
compartment, the air flow passing through the evaporator and
returning to the interior of the passenger compartment; a
compressor that compresses the coolant; a condenser that causes
heat exchange between the coolant and outside air; a coolant pipe
that causes the coolant to circulate through the evaporator, the
compressor, and the condenser; and a spray nozzle that sprays water
in a mist form to the outside air flowing to the condenser. The
evaporator and the blower fan are provided in a ceiling portion of
the vehicle. The condenser and the spray nozzle are provided in a
lower portion of the vehicle.
[0011] By spraying water to the outside air flowing to the
condenser, the cooling efficiency during cooling can be further
improved. By dividing and arranging the components of the air
conditioner into the ceiling portion and the lower portion of the
vehicle, the degree of freedom in designing the ceiling portion of
the vehicle can be further improved.
[0012] In this case, the air conditioning unit may further include:
a water tank that is provided under a floor of the passenger
compartment and stores water; and a water pump that supplies the
water in the water tank to the spray nozzle.
[0013] Arranging the heavy water tank under the floor lowers the
center of gravity of the vehicle, resulting in further improved
stability of the vehicle.
[0014] In this case, the air conditioning unit may further include
a drain hose through which water condensed by the evaporator is
guided to the water tank.
[0015] By guiding the condensed water generated by the evaporator
to the water tank, the frequency of water supply to the water tank
can be reduced.
[0016] The vehicle air conditioner may further include: a front
side air conditioning unit for air conditioning on a front side of
the passenger compartment, and a rear side air conditioning unit
for air conditioning on a rear side of the passenger compartment.
The condenser and the spray nozzle of the front side air
conditioning unit may be provided in a front side accommodation
space positioned at a lower front corner portion of the vehicle.
The condenser and the spray nozzle of the rear side air
conditioning unit may be provided in a rear side accommodation
space positioned in a lower rear corner portion of the vehicle.
[0017] By arranging the air conditioning units in the front and
rear portions of the vehicle, the entire passenger compartment can
be efficiently cooled.
[0018] A vehicle disclosed herein is an electric vehicle including:
a power unit including a drive motor that causes the vehicle to
travel; and a battery that stores power to drive the drive motor.
The vehicle air conditioner includes at least one air conditioning
unit. The air conditioning unit includes: an evaporator that causes
heat exchange between air in an interior of a passenger compartment
and a coolant; a blower fan that generates an air flow from the
interior of the passenger compartment, the air flow passing through
the evaporator and returning to the interior of the passenger
compartment; a compressor that compresses the coolant; a condenser
that causes heat exchange between the coolant and outside air; a
coolant pipe that causes the coolant to circulate through the
evaporator, the compressor, and the condenser; and a spray nozzle
that sprays water in a mist form to the outside air flowing to the
condenser. The evaporator and the blower fan are provided in a
ceiling portion of the vehicle. The condenser and the spray nozzle
are provided in a lower portion of the vehicle.
[0019] By spraying water to the outside air flowing to the
condenser, the cooling efficiency during cooling can be further
improved. By dividing and arranging the components of the air
conditioner into the ceiling portion and the lower portion of the
vehicle, the degree of freedom in designing the ceiling portion of
the vehicle can be further improved.
[0020] In this case, the vehicle may have a substantially box shape
with a front end and a rear end extending in a substantially
vertical direction from a bottom part to a ceiling of the vehicle,
and the vehicle may be able to be autonomously driven.
[0021] In the case of a box-shaped vehicle that can be autonomously
driven, there is no hood, trunk, driver's seat, or the like, so
that the space for accommodating the components of the air
conditioner is limited. However, with the vehicle disclosed herein,
since these elements are divided and accommodated, the air
conditioner can be installed in a substantially box-shaped
autonomous driving vehicle without having compromised design.
[0022] In this case, the vehicle air conditioner may include a
front side air conditioning unit for air conditioning a front side
of the passenger compartment, and a rear side air conditioning unit
for air conditioning a rear side of the passenger compartment. The
condenser and the spray nozzle of the front side air conditioning
unit may be provided in a front side accommodation space positioned
between a pair of front wheels of the vehicle. The condenser and
the spray nozzle of the rear side air conditioning unit may be
provided in a rear side accommodation space positioned between a
pair of rear wheels of the vehicle. In the rear side accommodation
space, the power unit and a radiator that cools a motor coolant for
cooling the power unit may be further arranged. The radiator and
the condenser of the rear side air conditioning unit may be
vertically arranged.
[0023] By arranging the air conditioning units in the front and
rear portions of the vehicle, the entire passenger compartment can
be efficiently cooled. In addition, by arranging the radiator and
the condenser vertically, other coolants for cooling the power unit
can be effectively cooled, and the power unit can be desirably
cooled.
[0024] The vehicle may have a lower end of at least one of a front
end surface and a rear end surface provided with a grill through
which the outside air is able to pass. The condenser may be
provided to face the grill in a forward and rearward direction. The
grill has an upper end positioned lower than a center of the
condenser in a height direction.
[0025] With such a configuration, the grill can be positioned at a
lower level, a sufficient area for the front end surface and the
rear end surface of the vehicle can be secured, and the degree of
design freedom of the front end surface and the rear end surface
can be improved.
[0026] A vehicle disclosed herein includes: a main battery provided
under a floor of a center part of a passenger compartment; and one
or more air conditioning units that perform air conditioning in the
passenger compartment. Each of the one or more air conditioning
units includes: an evaporator that causes heat exchange between air
in an interior of the passenger compartment and a coolant; a blower
fan that generates an air flow from the interior of the passenger
compartment, the air flow passing through the evaporator and
returning to the interior of the passenger compartment; a
compressor that compresses the coolant; a condenser that causes
heat exchange between the coolant and outside air; and a coolant
pipe that causes the coolant to circulate through the evaporator,
the compressor, and the condenser. The evaporator and the blower
fan are provided in a ceiling portion of the vehicle. The condenser
and the compressor are provided in at least one of a front side
accommodation space positioned at a lower front corner portion of
the vehicle and a rear side accommodation space positioned in a
lower rear corner portion of the vehicle.
[0027] As described above, by dividing and arranging the components
of the air conditioning unit into the ceiling portion and the
accommodation spaces in the lower portion of the vehicle, the
degree of freedom in designing the ceiling portion of the vehicle
can be further improved. In particular, the upward projection of
the ceiling portion can be suppressed.
[0028] In this case, the vehicle may further include a peripheral
information sensor that is provided on an outer surface of the
ceiling of the vehicle and detects information about a periphery of
the vehicle. The vehicle may at least have an autonomous driving
function or a driver assistance function with which traveling of
the vehicle is controlled based on the information detected by the
peripheral information sensor.
[0029] In the above-mentioned vehicle, formation of any protrusion
that is likely to interfere with the detection of the peripheral
information sensor is suppressed, so that the peripheral
information can be efficiently detected by mounting the peripheral
information sensor on the outer surface of the ceiling.
[0030] With the vehicle air conditioner and the vehicle disclosed
herein, by spraying water to the outside air flowing to the
condenser, the cooling efficiency during cooling can be further
improved. By dividing and arranging the components of the air
conditioner into the ceiling portion and the lower portion of the
vehicle, the degree of freedom in designing the ceiling portion of
the vehicle can be further improved.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0031] Embodiment(s) of the present disclosure will be described
based on the following figures, wherein:
[0032] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a vehicle as viewed from the
outside;
[0033] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the interior of a passenger
compartment as viewed in a direction from the center of the vehicle
toward the front side of the vehicle;
[0034] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the interior of the
passenger compartment as viewed in a direction from a front portion
of the vehicle toward the rear side of the vehicle;
[0035] FIG. 4 is a rear perspective view of a main frame of the
vehicle;
[0036] FIG. 5 is a side perspective view of the main frame of the
vehicle;
[0037] FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an
air conditioner;
[0038] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration
of one air conditioning unit;
[0039] FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating an arrangement of
main components of the air conditioner;
[0040] FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a section
around a ceiling assembly;
[0041] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement
of a lower part accommodated in a front side accommodation
space;
[0042] FIG. 11 is a perspective view illustrating a section around
a condenser of a front side air conditioning unit;
[0043] FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective view illustrating an
arrangement of a compressor of the front side air conditioning
unit;
[0044] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement
of a lower part accommodated in a rear side air conditioning
unit;
[0045] FIG. 14 is a perspective view illustrating a section around
a condenser of the rear side air conditioning unit;
[0046] FIG. 15 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a
section around a center part; and
[0047] FIG. 16 is a schematic view illustrating a periphery of a
water supply port as viewed from the front.
DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0048] Hereinafter, a configuration of a vehicle 10 equipped with
an air conditioner 50 will be described with reference to the
drawings. In the drawings referred to in the description below,
"Fr", "Up", and "L" respectively indicate a vehicle front side, a
vehicle upward side, and a left side in a vehicle width
direction.
<Overall Configuration>
[0049] First of all, an overall configuration of the vehicle 10
will be briefly described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 5. FIG. 1 is
a perspective view of the vehicle 10 as viewed from the outside.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating the interior of a
passenger compartment as viewed in a direction from the center of
the vehicle toward the front side of the vehicle. FIG. 3 is a
perspective view illustrating the interior of the passenger
compartment as viewed in a direction from a front portion of the
vehicle toward the rear side of the vehicle. FIGS. 4 and 5 are
perspective views illustrating a main frame 12 of the vehicle
10.
[0050] The vehicle 10 is used as a bus for transporting passengers
while autonomously traveling along a predetermined route in a
predefined site. Thus, the vehicle 10 repeatedly stops and starts
relatively frequently, and opens and closes a door 22 relatively
frequently for passengers to get on and off. The vehicle 10 travels
at a relatively low speed (for example, not faster than 30
km/h).
[0051] However, a use mode of the vehicle 10 disclosed in this
specification can be changed as appropriate. For example, the
vehicle 10 may be used as a mobile business space. For example, the
vehicle 10 may be used as a store such as a retail store that
displays and sells various products, or a food van that cooks and
provides food and drink. As another mode, the vehicle 10 may be
used as an office for office work, meetings with customers, and the
like. Furthermore, the vehicle 10 may be used as a taxi, a bus, or
a transportation vehicle for transporting customers and luggage.
Furthermore, the usage scene of the vehicle 10 is not limited to
business. For example, the vehicle 10 may be used as a personal
transportation means. Furthermore, the traveling pattern and
traveling speed of the vehicle 10 may be changed as
appropriate.
[0052] The vehicle 10 is an electric vehicle having a drive motor
serving as a prime mover. The vehicle 10 is equipped with a main
battery 106 (see FIG. 15) for supplying electric power to the drive
motor. The air conditioner 50 described later is driven by the
electric power from the main battery 106. The main battery 106 is a
chargeable/dischargeable secondary battery, and is periodically
charged with external power. Note that the vehicle 10 is not
limited to an electric vehicle and may be another type of vehicle
so long as it has a battery that supplies electric power to the air
conditioner 50. For example, the vehicle 10 may be an engine
vehicle equipped with an engine as a prime mover, or a hybrid
vehicle equipped with an engine and a drive motor as prime movers.
Further, the vehicle 10 may be a fuel cell vehicle that drives a
drive motor with electric power generated by fuel cells.
[0053] Further, the vehicle 10 can travel by autonomous driving as
described above. The term "autonomous driving" as used herein means
that the vehicle 10 performs almost all of the dynamic driving
tasks, and corresponds to any one of Level 3 to Level 5 defined by
the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) of the US, for example.
Level 3 is a driving mode in which all dynamic driving tasks are
automated in a specific place such as an expressway, but an
operation by a driver is required in an emergency. Level 4 is a
driving mode in which all dynamic driving tasks are automated only
in specific places, and emergency response is automatically
processed. Level 5 is a driving mode known as "full driving
automation" meaning that the driving can be automated under any
kind of condition, without being limited by location or the like.
Note that the vehicle 10 may have a driving support function to be
in charge of a part of the dynamic driving tasks, instead of the
autonomous driving function. For example, "drive assistance"
corresponds to Level 1 or Level 2 defined by SAE. Level 1 means
that the vehicle 10 supports either one of steering operation and
acceleration/deceleration. Level 2 means that the vehicle 10
supports driving while controlling both steering operation and
acceleration/deceleration. Such autonomous driving or driver
assistance is enabled with one or more peripheral information
sensors 130 provided to the vehicle 10. The peripheral information
sensor 130 detects information about the periphery of the vehicle
10. The peripheral information sensor 130 is not particularly
limited so long as it is a sensor that can detect peripheral
information. Thus, the peripheral information sensor 130 may be,
for example, a camera (a visible light camera, an infrared camera,
or the like) that captures a peripheral image. Furthermore, the
peripheral information sensor 130 may be a laser sensor (for
example, a millimeter wave radar) that detects an object using
radio waves. Furthermore, the peripheral information sensor 130 may
be an optical sensor (for example, an infrared sensor or a LiDAR)
that detects an object using light. In this example, at least one
of the peripheral information sensors 130 is mounted on the outer
surface of the ceiling of the vehicle 10.
[0054] As illustrated in FIG. 1, the vehicle 10 has no hood or
trunk, and has a substantially box-shaped (cuboid) outer shape with
a front end surface and a rear end surface standing substantially
vertically. A pair of front wheels 18 and a pair of rear wheels 20
are respectively provided near the front end and the rear end of
the vehicle 10. Large windows 13 are provided on side surfaces of
the vehicle 10. Furthermore, the door 22 is a a double-sided
sliding door that slides in the forward and rearward direction of
the vehicle to open and close, and is provided at the center of the
left side surface of the vehicle 10. In other words, in this
example, the door 22 is formed on one of two side surfaces in the
vehicle width direction, and not on the other side surface.
[0055] The front end surface of the vehicle 10 is provided with a
window 13 functioning as a windshield, and a lamp arrangement
portion 14 disposed below the window 13. Signal lamps 15 for
notifying a person outside the vehicle of the presence and behavior
of the vehicle by light are disposed in the lamp arrangement
portion 14. At the lower end of the lamp arrangement portion 14, a
front grill 24f for guiding outside air into the vehicle is
provided. The rear end surface of the vehicle 10 has substantially
the same configuration as the front end surface of the vehicle.
Specifically, a window 13 and a lamp arrangement portion 14 are
arranged vertically, and a rear grill 24r (not visible in FIG. 1)
is provided at the lower end of the lamp arrangement portion 14.
Accordingly, the vehicle 10 in this example has a substantially
symmetrical appearance in the forward and rearward direction.
[0056] As illustrated in FIG. 2, operation panels 26 for receiving
an instruction from an operator are provided in a passenger
compartment front portion of the vehicle 10. Furthermore, a floor
panel 100 has a portion near the front end raised to form a seat 28
on which passengers can sit while facing the vehicle rear side.
Similarly, as illustrated in FIG. 3, the floor panel 100 has a
portion near the rear end raised to form a seat 28 on which
passengers can sit while facing the vehicle front side. In the
passenger compartment, no large interior part such as a seat is
fixedly arranged around the door 22, so that a relatively wide
space can be guaranteed.
[0057] The vehicle 10 in this example has a body-on-frame structure
in which a body 16 having a box shape is mounted on the main frame
12 having a ladder shape. As illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 5, the main
frame 12 is roughly divided into a front part Pf located between
the pair of front wheels 18, a rear part Pr located between the
pair of rear wheels 20, and a center part Pc positioned between the
front part Pf and the rear part Pr. The front part Pf is provided
with a pair of front side members 30 extending in the vehicle
forward and rearward direction, and cross members 36a, 36b, and 36c
connecting the pair of front side members 30 to each other. The
cross member 36c connects the rear ends of the two front side
members 30 to each other. Suspension towers 40 for attaching an air
suspension (not illustrated) stand from the upper surfaces of the
front side members 30.
[0058] The rear part Pr is similar to the front part Pf, in that it
is also provided with a pair of rear side members 34 extending in
the vehicle forward and rearward direction, and cross members 36i,
36j, and 36k connecting the pair of rear side members 34 to each
other. The cross member 36i connects the front ends of the two rear
side members 34 to each other. Suspension towers 40 for attaching
an air suspension (not illustrated) stand from the upper surfaces
of the rear side members 34.
[0059] The center part Pc is provided with a pair of center side
members 32 extending in the vehicle forward and rearward direction,
and cross members 36d, 36e, 36f, 36g, and 36h connecting the pair
of center side members 32 to each other. The cross member 36d
connects the front ends of the pair of center side members 32 to
each other, and the cross member 36h connects the rear ends of the
pair of center side members 32 to each other. The cross member 36e
is provided adjacent to the rear side of the cross member 36d, and
the cross member 36g is provided adjacent to the front side of the
cross member 36h. In other words, at the front end and the rear end
of the center part Pc, two cross members 36 extending in the
vehicle width direction are stacked in the forward and rearward
direction. Thus, deformation of the center part Pc is more
effectively prevented.
[0060] As can be clearly seen in FIGS. 4 and 5, the center part Pc
is located at a lower level than the front part Pf and the rear
part Pr. Therefore, the boundary between the center part Pc and the
front part Pf is provided with a kick member 38 that extends
vertically and connects the cross member 36c and the cross member
36d to each other. Similarly, the boundary between the center part
Pc and the rear part Pr is provided with a kick member 38 that
extends vertically and connects the cross member 36i and the cross
member 36h to each other.
[0061] A prime mover, a power transmission device, a brake device,
a traveling device, a suspension device, a steering device, an
electric device, and the like are assembled to the main frame 12 as
described above, whereby a chassis is formed. Here, as described
above, a front portion (corresponding to the front part Pf) and a
rear portion (corresponding to the rear part Pr) of the floor panel
100 are raised upward. Most of the above-described prime mover and
various devices are arranged in a space below the raised portion of
the floor panel 100. Hereinafter, the space below the front raised
portion of the floor panel 100 (a portion at the lower front corner
of the vehicle 10 and between the pair of front wheels 18) will be
referred to as a "front side accommodation space 94f". Similarly,
the space below the rear raised portion of the floor panel 100 (a
portion at the lower rear corner of the vehicle 10 and between the
pair of rear wheels 20) will be referred to as a "rear side
accommodation space 94r". The spaces will be simply referred to an
"accommodation space 94" with the signs f and r omitted, when they
are not distinguished from each other as the front side space and
the rear side space.
[0062] The box-shaped body 16 is assembled on the main frame 12. As
illustrated in FIG. 1, the body 16 includes, for example, pillars
42 and 44 extending in the vehicle upward and downward direction,
rails 46 extending in the forward and rearward direction at the
boundaries between the side surfaces and the top surface of the
vehicle 10, and a rocker 48 extending in the forward and rearward
direction (hidden by an unlabeled rocker molding 110 in FIG. 1 to
be not visible in FIG. 1, see FIG. 16) for supporting, from below,
end portions of the floor panel 100 in the vehicle width direction.
In the following, a pillar provided at the boundary between the
side surface of the vehicle 10 and the front or rear surface is
referred to as a "first pillar 42", and a pillar provided in a side
surface middle portion of the vehicle 10 and positioned closer to
the center in the vehicle forward and rearward direction than is
the first pillar 42 is referred to as a "second pillar 44".
<Overall Configuration of Air Conditioner 50>
[0063] Next, the overall configuration of the air conditioner 50
installed in the vehicle 10 will be described. FIG. 6 is a block
diagram illustrating the configuration of the air conditioner 50.
As illustrated in FIG. 6, the air conditioner 50 in this example
includes a front side air conditioning unit 52f for air
conditioning in the front part of the passenger compartment, a rear
side air conditioning unit 52r for air conditioning in the rear
part of the passenger compartment, and a control unit 51 that
controls the driving of these two units. The two air conditioning
units 52f and 52r have substantially the same configuration. The
units will be referred to as "air conditioning unit 52" with the
suffixes f and r omitted when they are not distinguished from each
other.
[0064] The control unit 51 may be, for example, a computer having a
processor and a memory, or an electronic control unit (ECU) having
a microcomputer, an analog circuit, a power transistor, and the
like mounted on a wiring board. The control unit 51 receives a
detection result of a sensor mounted on each air conditioning unit
52, an instruction from an operator input via the operation panels
26, and the like. The control unit 51 calculates a required control
amount based on these input signals, and outputs a drive signal to
devices forming the air conditioning unit 52 so that the control
amount is obtained.
[0065] The two air conditioning units 52 can be driven
independently of each other. With the two independent air
conditioning units 52 thus provided, even if one of the air
conditioning units 52 fails, air conditioning can be performed by
the other air conditioning unit 52. Thus, the air conditioner 50
can offer improved reliability.
[0066] Next, the configuration of each air conditioning unit 52
will be described. FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram illustrating the
configuration of one air conditioning unit 52. The air conditioning
unit 52 has a coolant pipe 74 through which a coolant circulates,
and a compressor 60, a condenser 62, an expansion valve 58, and an
evaporator 54 provided at intermediate sections of the coolant pipe
74. The compressor 60 compresses a gas coolant to obtain a
high-temperature and high-pressure liquid coolant. The condenser 62
is a heat exchanger that exchanges heat between the coolant and the
outside air. An electric fan 64 that guides the outside air to the
condenser 62 is provided behind the condenser 62. Further, the
expansion valve 58 rapidly expands the coolant and sends it to the
evaporator 54 or the condenser 62. The evaporator 54 is a heat
exchanger that exchanges heat with the air in the passenger
compartment. A blower fan 56 is provided behind the evaporator 54,
and sends the air in the passenger compartment to the evaporator 54
and blows out the air after the heat exchange into the passenger
compartment.
[0067] In a cooling cycle, a high-temperature and high-pressure
semi-liquid coolant is output from the compressor 60 to the
condenser 62. The condenser 62 cools the coolant using the outside
air to change it into the liquid coolant. The expansion valve 58
injects the liquid coolant sent from the condenser 62 into the
evaporator 54 through fine nozzle holes. As a result, the liquid
coolant is immediately evaporated. With the coolant thus
evaporated, the heat around the evaporator 54 is taken away,
whereby the evaporator 54 is cooled. The air from the blower fan 56
passes through the evaporator 54 to be sent into the passenger
compartment as cool air. The coolant having flowed out from the
evaporator 54 returns to the compressor 60 to be compressed again.
In FIG. 7, in the coolant pipe 74, a lightly hatched portion
indicates a range where the coolant is in a gas state during
cooling, and a darkly hatched portion indicates a range where the
coolant is in a liquid or semi-liquid state during cooling. In a
heating cycle, the flow of the coolant is opposite to that in the
cooling cycle.
[0068] Here, this example assumes the vehicle 10 that travels at a
low speed, and stops and opens and closes the door 22 frequently,
as described above. In such a vehicle, the traveling wind is
limited, meaning that the cooling efficiency of the coolant in the
compressor 60 is likely to be low. Furthermore, the frequent
opening and closing of the door 22 facilitates outflow of the cool
air from the passenger compartment, and thus the cooling efficiency
is likely to be low. Thus, the vehicle 10 assumed in this example
has the problem that a large amount of electric power is required
for cooling.
[0069] Therefore, in this example, in order to reduce power
consumption during cooling, spray nozzles 66 for spraying water in
a mist form are provided in front of the compressor 60. The mist
water is sprayed on the side of the compressor 60 opposite to the
electric fan 64; that is, into an intermediate portion of the flow
path of the outside air passing through the compressor 60, that is
positioned further on the upstream side than the compressor 60. The
sprayed mist water evaporates just before the compressor 60 to take
away heat therearound. Thereby, cooler air is blown into the
compressor 60 as compared with a case where no spray nozzle 66 is
provided. As a result, the coolant can be cooled more efficiently,
whereby the cooling efficiency can be improved. As a result, power
consumption can be significantly reduced. This can achieve
extremely advantageous effects in an electric vehicle using the
electric power stored in the main battery 106 as an energy source
for traveling. Specifically, a longer continuous traveling time;
that is, a longer charging interval, can be achieved.
[0070] The air conditioner 50 also includes a water tank 68 for
storing water to be supplied to the spray nozzles 66. The water
tank 68 and the spray nozzles 66 are connected to each other
through an output hose 76a, and a water pump 69 for pumping the
stored water to the spray nozzles 66 is provided in an intermediate
section of the output hose 76a. Further, a drain hose 76b and a
water supply hose 76d are also connected to the water tank 68. The
drain hose 76b is a hose that guides condensed water generated by
the evaporator 54 to the water tank 68 during cooling. As described
above, the frequency of water supply to the water tank 68 can be
reduced with the condensed water generated during cooling not
discarded but used for the mist spraying. Thus, a workload for
managing the air conditioner 50 can be reduced.
[0071] A rainwater hose 76c joins with an intermediate section of
the drain hose 76b. The rainwater hose 76c is a hose connected to a
rainwater collection port 78. The rainwater collection port 78 is
provided on the top surface of the vehicle 10, and is an opening
through which rainwater is guided to the rainwater hose 76c. In
this way, by collecting and storing rainwater in addition to the
condensed water, the frequency of supplying water to the water tank
68 can be further reduced, and the workload for managing the air
conditioner 50 can be reduced.
[0072] The water supply hose 76d is a hose that further connects
the water tank 68 and a water supply port 72 to each other. The
water supply port 72 is provided at a lower portion of the vehicle
10 and can be connected to an external water hose, as described
later in detail. When sufficient water cannot be secured with
condensed water and rainwater alone, water is supplied from the
water supply port 72 to the water tank 68 through the water supply
hose 76d. The water tank 68 is provided with a sensor for detecting
the storage amount. Examples of the sensor include a level sensor
70 for detecting the liquid level, a weight sensor for detecting
the weight of the stored water, and the like. The control unit 51
outputs an alarm to the operator based on the detection result of
the sensor indicating that the storage amount that is equal to or
less than a certain value. Furthermore, the control unit 51 drives
the water pump 69 in conjunction with the driving of the air
conditioner 50 to spray mist water to a portion near the compressor
60. Thus, by not only storing condensed water and rainwater, but
also supplying water from the outside, it is possible to spray
water for a longer period of time, so that an improved cooling
efficiency of the air conditioner 50 can be achieved for a longer
period of time.
<Overview of Arrangement in Air Conditioner>
[0073] Next, the arrangement of members forming the air
conditioning unit 52 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7
and 8. FIG. 8 is a perspective view illustrating an arrangement of
main components of the air conditioner 50. As described above, the
air conditioner 50 in this example is roughly divided into the
front side air conditioning unit 52f and the rear side air
conditioning unit 52r. Each air conditioning unit 52 can be further
roughly classified into a ceiling part Pt, a lower part Pb, and a
water supply part Pw based on the arrangement.
[0074] The ceiling part Pt is arranged on the ceiling portion of
the vehicle, and includes the evaporator 54, the blower fan 56, the
expansion valve 58, the rainwater collection port 78, and the like.
Among them, the evaporator 54, the blower fan 56, and the expansion
valve 58 are housed in one case to be a one-piece component.
Hereinafter, this one-piece component will be referred to as a
"ceiling assembly 79".
[0075] The ceiling portion of the vehicle 10 is provided with a
ceiling exterior panel 84 and a ceiling interior panel 86 (not
illustrated in FIG. 8, see FIG. 9), with a ceiling space 88
provided therebetween. In this example, the ceiling assembly 79 is
arranged in the ceiling space 88. As can be clearly seen in FIG. 8,
the ceiling assembly 79 of the front side air conditioning unit 52f
is arranged near the front end of the ceiling space 88, and the
ceiling assembly 79 of the rear side air conditioning unit 52r is
arranged near the rear end of the ceiling space 88. The opening
functioning as the rainwater collection port 78 is provided
substantially at the center of the ceiling portion of the vehicle
10.
[0076] The compressor 60, the condenser 62, and the spray nozzles
66 forming the lower part Pb are arranged in the front side
accommodation space 94f or the rear side accommodation space 94r.
Specifically, in the front side accommodation space 94f, the spray
nozzles 66, the condenser 62, and the compressor 60 of the front
side air conditioning unit 52f are arranged in this order from the
front. In the rear side accommodation space 94r, the compressor 60,
the spray nozzles 66, and the condenser 62 of the rear side air
conditioning unit 52r are arranged in this order from the front.
Note that a radiator 80 used for cooling a motor unit 112 is
disposed above the condenser 62 of the rear side air conditioning
unit 52r.
[0077] The water tank 68 forming the water supply part Pw is
arranged under the floor of the vehicle 10. In this example, the
water tank 68 of the front side air conditioning unit 52f is
provided at a location, under the vehicle floor, adjacent to the
front side accommodation space 94f, and the water tank 68 of the
rear side air conditioning unit 52r is provided at a location,
under the vehicle floor, adjacent to the rear side accommodation
space 94r. Furthermore, the water supply port 72 is provided at a
lower end of the side surface of the vehicle 10 (below the rocker
48). The water supply port 72 is connected to the two water tanks
68 through the water supply hoses 76d. Therefore, in this example,
the front side air conditioning unit 52f and the rear side air
conditioning unit 52r share a single water supply port 72.
[0078] A portion of the coolant pipe 74 connecting the ceiling
assembly 79 and the lower part Pb to each other is provided through
the inside of the first pillar 42. Specifically, the first pillar
42 is formed by joining an inner panel and an outer panel (neither
of which is illustrated), with a space provided therebetween. In
this example, the coolant pipe 74 is provided through this
space.
[0079] Furthermore, the drain hoses 76b connecting the ceiling
assembly 79 and the water tanks 68 to each other are provided
through the inside of the second pillars 44. In this example, the
drain hoses 76b extend from both ends of the ceiling assembly 79 in
the vehicle width direction, and are provided through the second
pillars 44 provided on respective sides of the vehicle. As a
result, in the vehicle as a whole, four drain hoses 76b are
provided through the four second pillars 44.
[0080] Specifically, in this example, the vertically extending
coolant pipe 74 and the drain hoses 76b are both provided through
the pillars 42 and 44. With this configuration, no member dedicated
for hiding the coolant pipe 74 and the drain hoses 76b needs to be
additionally provided, whereby the configuration of the vehicle can
be further simplified. The compressor 60 is disposed in a front or
rear portion of the vehicle 10. The water tank 68 is disposed
closer to the center in the vehicle forward and rearward direction
than is the compressor 60. With the coolant pipe 74 connected to
the compressor 60 provided through the first pillar 42 and the
drain hose 76b connected to the compressor 60 provided through the
second pillar 44 located closer to the center than is the first
pillar 42, the lengths of the coolant pipe 74 and the drain hoses
76b can be reduced. As a result, the material cost can be reduced.
The reduced length of the coolant pipe 74 further results in a
smaller heat loss of the coolant, whereby the air conditioning
efficiency can be further improved.
[0081] The rainwater hose 76c joins the drain hose 76b near the
ceiling of the vehicle 10. The water supply hose 76d connected to
the water supply port 72 extends in the forward and rearward
direction on the side of the rocker 48, and is connected to the two
water tanks 68.
<Ceiling Assembly>
[0082] Next, the configuration of the ceiling assembly 79 will be
described. FIG. 9 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a section
around the ceiling assembly 79. The ceiling assembly 79 is disposed
in the ceiling space 88 formed between the ceiling exterior panel
84 and the ceiling interior panel 86, as described above. A
ventilation port 90, communicating with the passenger compartment
and the ceiling space 88, is formed in a portion of the ceiling
interior panel 86 facing the ceiling assembly 79. Further, a duct
82 that guides the air flow is disposed between the ventilation
port 90 and the ceiling assembly 79. The air in the passenger
compartment is guided to the ceiling assembly 79 via the
ventilation port 90 and the duct 82, and the
temperature-conditioned air output from the ceiling assembly 79 is
discharged into the passenger compartment. Therefore, the
conditioned air is blown out from the top surface of the passenger
compartment.
[0083] Here, some conventionally known vehicles have a top surface
of the passenger compartment provided with an air-conditioner
outlet. However, in such conventional vehicles, a compressor and a
condenser are provided in the ceiling space of the vehicle in
addition to the evaporator, the blower fan, and the expansion
valve. Thus, the ceiling space needs to have a large thickness to
accommodate all these components. The thickness of the ceiling
space may be increased with the ceiling exterior panel protruding
outward (upward) in a portion where the air conditioning unit is
arranged. However, this results in a reduced degree of freedom of
vehicle design, and an increased vehicle height. Alternatively,
instead of the ceiling exterior panel, the ceiling interior panel
can protrude inward (downward) so that the thickness of the ceiling
space can be secured while suppressing the increase in the vehicle
height. However, this results in a low ceiling of the passenger
compartment, which directly leads to a vehicle passenger
compartment with the sense of openness compromised.
[0084] In this example, only the ceiling assembly 79 (the
evaporator 54, the blower fan 56, and the expansion valve 58) is
arranged in the ceiling space 88, whereby the thickness of the
ceiling space 88 can be prevented from being large. As a result,
the passenger compartment can have a high ceiling without
increasing the vehicle height. Furthermore, the ceiling space 88
can be thin, whereby a degree of freedom of the vehicle design can
be improved.
[0085] Here, as described above, in this example, at least one
peripheral information sensor 130 is mounted on the outer surface
of the ceiling of the vehicle 10. The peripheral information sensor
130 transmits and receives light or radio waves to detect the
peripheral information. Therefore, if there is a protruding portion
that blocks light or radio waves near the peripheral information
sensor 130, the peripheral information cannot be sufficiently
detected. Therefore, a protrusion or the like on the outer surface
of the ceiling of the vehicle 10 will limit the installation
position of the peripheral information sensor 130. In this example,
as described above, only the ceiling assembly 79 is disposed on the
ceiling, and thus there is no large protrusion on the outer surface
of the ceiling of the vehicle 10. As a result, the degree of
freedom of the installation position of the peripheral information
sensor 130 is improved.
[0086] The ceiling of the vehicle 10 is likely to be exposed to
direct sunlight, and the temperature of the ceiling space 88 is
likely to rise in summer. Thus, when the evaporator 54 and the like
are arranged in the ceiling space 88, the cooling efficiency may be
compromised. Therefore, in this example, a heat insulating sheet 92
is attached to the back surface of the ceiling exterior panel 84
(the surface facing the ceiling interior panel 86). The material of
the heat insulating sheet 92 is not particularly limited so long as
it has appropriate heat insulating properties. Thus, the heat
insulating sheet 92 may be formed of, for example, a fiber heat
insulating material such as glass wool or rock wool, or may be
formed of a foam heat insulating material such as urethane foam or
phenolic foam. In any case, with the heat insulating sheet 92
attached to the back surface of the ceiling exterior panel 84, the
rise in the temperature of the ceiling space 88 can be suppressed,
whereby the cooling efficiency of the air conditioner 50 can be
improved.
<Lower Part of Front Side Air Conditioning Unit>
[0087] Next, the lower part Pb of the front side air conditioning
unit 52f will be described. FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram
illustrating an arrangement of the lower part Pb accommodated in
the front side accommodation space 94f. FIG. 11 is a perspective
view illustrating a section around the condenser 62 of the front
side air conditioning unit 52f. FIG. 12 is a schematic perspective
view illustrating an arrangement of the compressor 60 of the front
side air conditioning unit 52f.
[0088] As illustrated in FIG. 10, the spray nozzles 66, the
condenser 62, the electric fan 64, and the compressor 60 are
arranged in the front side accommodation space 94f in this order
from the front. Further, the front grill 24f through which the
front side accommodation space 94f is communicated with the outside
is disposed in front of the condenser 62. The front grill 24f is
provided at the lower end of the front end surface of the vehicle
10.
[0089] The front grill 24f is arranged at the lower end of the
front end surface, so that a large area can be secured for the lamp
arrangement portion 14. As illustrated in FIG. 10, the front grill
24f arranged at the lower end of the front end surface has its
upper end located below the center of the condenser 62 in the
height direction. Thus, the front grill 24f is offset downward with
respect to the condenser 62. Therefore, as indicated by a two-dot
chain line in FIG. 10, outside air enters the front side
accommodation space 94f from the front grill 24f, and is then
sucked by the electric fan 64 to flow upward. Then, after passing
through the condenser 62 and the electric fan 64, the outside air
flows downward and then flows from the bottom of the front side
accommodation space 94f to the outside.
[0090] Thus, in this example, the outside air flowing into the
condenser 62 flows along a mountain-like route with the top being
positioned around the condenser 62. A duct 83 is provided between
the front grill 24f and the condenser 62 to guide the flow of the
outside air. The front side accommodation space 94f not only
includes the components forming the air conditioning unit 52 but
also includes a brake device, a steering device, a pump of an air
suspension, an air tank, and the like. The outside air that has
passed through the condenser 62 and the electric fan 64 is
discharged to the outside through gaps between the brake device,
the steering device, and the like.
[0091] As illustrated in FIG. 11, the condenser 62 of the front
side air conditioning unit 52f has a flat rectangular
parallelepiped shape, and has a horizontally long rectangular shape
in front view. The condenser 62 is supported by a support frame 99.
The support frame 99 has a rear portion connected to a fan shroud
(not illustrated) that supports the electric fan 64. As a result,
the electric fan 64 is located immediately behind the condenser
62.
[0092] A plurality of the spray nozzles 66 are arranged in front of
the condenser 62. In this example, four spray nozzles 66 are
provided, with two nozzles provided near each of both ends of the
condenser 62 in the vehicle width direction. Furthermore, the spray
nozzles 66 are oriented with the spray axis direction being in
parallel with the surface of the condenser 62. Specifically, the
spray nozzles 66 are arranged to have the spray axis oriented in
parallel with the vehicle width direction. With such a
configuration, the mist is less likely to hit the condenser 62, and
is likely to spread in the space in front of the condenser 62. As a
result, the mist can be sprayed more evenly. Each spray nozzle 66
is supported by a nozzle bracket 120, and the nozzle bracket 120 is
attached to the support frame 99. The mist sprayed from the spray
nozzles 66 is vaporized at a position immediately before the
condenser 62, and thus the outside air temperature flowing into the
condenser 62 can be reduced. Thus, the cooling efficiency of the
coolant in the condenser 62, and thus the cooling efficiency of the
air conditioner 50 can be improved.
[0093] As can be clearly seen in FIG. 10, each of the spray nozzles
66 is disposed above the water tank 68. With this configuration,
water is not output from the spray nozzles 66 unless pressure is
applied from the water pump 69. As a result, there is no need to
provide a valve or the like for preventing leakage of water at an
intermediate section of the output hose 76a, whereby the
configuration can be simplified.
[0094] The compressor 60 of the front side air conditioning unit
52f is disposed behind the electric fan 64. To thus arrange the
compressor 60, in this example, a support plate 108 is bridged
between the pair of cross members 36a and 36b (see FIGS. 5 and 12)
provided in the front part Pf. The support plate 108 is a
substantially flat plate made of metal, and has one end welded to
the cross member 36a and the other end welded to the cross member
36b. The compressor 60 is fixed on the support plate 108.
[0095] As can be clearly see in FIG. 12, both cross members 36a and
36b have shapes with both ends in the vehicle width direction
raised toward the front side member 30. Therefore, the middle
portions of the cross members 36a and 36b in the vehicle width
direction are located at a lower level than the front side members
30. Thus, the compressor 60 can be arranged at a low height,
whereby the space efficiency of the front side accommodation space
94f can be improved.
[0096] Again, as described above, in the front side air
conditioning unit 52f, the condenser 62, the compressor 60, and the
spray nozzles 66 are arranged in the front side accommodation space
94f This arrangement is for downsizing the ceiling assembly 79 to
increase the degree of freedom of design around the ceiling of the
vehicle 10 as described above. In addition, the compressor 60,
which is a relatively heavy component in the front side air
conditioning unit 52f, is arranged in a lower portion of the
vehicle 10, whereby the stability of the vehicle 10 can be
improved. Furthermore, the condenser 62 arranged behind the front
grill 24f is more likely to receive the traveling wind, as compared
with a case where the condenser 62 is arranged on the ceiling,
whereby the cooling efficiency can be improved.
[0097] In this example, the front grill 24f is arranged to be
offset downward with respect to the condenser 62 so that the degree
of freedom in design of the front of the vehicle 10 can be
increased. The duct 83 is provided behind the front grill 24f in
this example so that the traveling wind can smoothly reach the
condenser 62 in such a configuration. In addition, the rotation
speed of the electric fan 64 is controlled so that a sufficient
amount of outside air flows to the condenser 62.
<Lower Part of Rear Side Air Conditioning Unit>
[0098] Next, the lower part Pb of the rear side air conditioning
unit 52r will be described. FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram
illustrating an arrangement of the lower part Pb accommodated in
the rear side air conditioning unit 52r. FIG. 14 is a perspective
view illustrating a section around the condenser 62 of the rear
side air conditioning unit 52r. As illustrated in FIG. 13, the
compressor 60, the spray nozzles 66, the condenser 62, and the
electric fan 64 are arranged in the rear side accommodation space
94r in this order from the front. In addition, the rear grill 24r
through which the rear side accommodation space 94r is communicated
with the outside is disposed behind the electric fan 64. The rear
grill 24r is provided at the lower end of the rear end surface of
the vehicle 10, as in the case of the front grill 24f As a result,
a large area can be secured for the lamp arrangement portion 14 on
the rear side.
[0099] Therefore, also in the rear side air conditioning unit 52r,
the upper end of the rear grill 24r is located below the center of
the condenser 62 in the height direction, and the rear grill 24r is
offset downward with respect to the condenser 62. Therefore, as
indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 13, outside air enters
the rear side accommodation space 94r from the lower side in the
rear side accommodation space 94r, and is then sucked by the
electric fan 64 to flow upward. Then, after passing through the
condenser 62 and the electric fan 64, the outside air flows
downward and then flows to the outside through the rear grill 24r.
Thus, also in this example, the outside air flows along a
mountain-like route with the top being positioned around the
condenser 62. To prevent the backflow of the outside air (exhaust
air) output from the electric fan 64, the duct 83 is provided
between the electric fan 64 and the rear grill 24r to guide the
flow of the exhaust air in this example.
[0100] The rear side accommodation space 94r includes, in addition
to the components of the air conditioning unit 52, a power unit 114
as a combination of a drive motor and a transmission mechanism, a
power control unit (PCU) 116 for controlling the drive of the power
unit 114, and the like. The condenser 62 is attached to a side
portion of a case of the power unit 114.
[0101] As illustrated in FIG. 14, the condenser 62 of the rear side
air conditioning unit 52r has a flat rectangular parallelepiped
shape, and has a horizontally long rectangular shape in front view.
The radiator 80 having a flat rectangular parallelepiped shape is
disposed above the condenser 62 of the rear side air conditioning
unit 52r. The radiator 80 is for cooling a coolant for cooling the
power unit 114. The support frame 99 holds the radiator 80 and the
condenser 62 that are vertically arranged. The support frame 99 has
a rear portion connected to a fan shroud (not illustrated) that
supports the electric fan 64, and the electric fan 64 is located
immediately behind the condenser 62 and the radiator 80.
[0102] A plurality (four in the illustrated example) of the spray
nozzles 66 are arranged in front of the condenser 62. The plurality
of spray nozzles 66 are each oriented with the spray axis direction
being in parallel with the surface of the condenser 62. In the rear
side air conditioning unit 52r, the plurality of spray nozzles 66
are more randomly arranged than in the front side air conditioning
unit 52f. Such an arrangement is for avoiding interference between
the spray nozzles 66 and various members arranged around the
condenser 62 of the rear side air conditioning unit 52r. In other
words, in addition to the pipe through which the coolant and water
used for air conditioning flow, the pipe through which the coolant
for cooling the power unit 114 flows is also provided around the
condenser 62 of the rear side air conditioning unit 52r. Thus, the
space available around the condenser 62 is limited as compared with
the space available in the front side air conditioning unit 52f
Consequently, in the rear side air conditioning unit 52r, the
plurality of spray nozzles 66 are more randomly arranged than in
the front side air conditioning unit 52f.
[0103] As described above, also in the rear side air conditioning
unit 52r, the compressor 60 and the spray nozzles 66 are arranged
in the lower portion of the vehicle 10, so that the degree of
design freedom around the ceiling of the vehicle 10 is increased,
and the stability of the vehicle 10 can be improved, as in the case
of the front side air conditioning unit 52f.
[0104] Incidentally, as is clear from the above description, in
this example, the two lower parts Pb each including the condenser
62 and the spray nozzles 66 are prepared, and these two lower parts
Pb are respectively arranged in the front and rear portions of the
vehicle 10. With this configuration, the condensers 62 can be
arranged in a well-balanced manner without having a large size.
Specifically, the condensers 62 preferably have an increased
surface area to increase the heat exchange efficiency thereof.
However, a large accommodation space 94 is difficult to secure in
the vehicle 10. This is particularly the case with the vehicle 10
having a box shape with no hood or trunk as in this example. Thus,
it is difficult to install a condenser 62 with a large surface
area. In this example, the two condensers 62 that can be
accommodated in the accommodation space 94 are prepared and are
respectively arranged in the front and the rear portions. Thus, a
sufficient cooling performance can be achieved with the condensers
62 each having a limited size.
<Water Supply Part>
[0105] Next, the configuration of the water supply part Pw will be
described. FIG. 15 is a schematic perspective view illustrating a
section around the center part Pc. The water supply part Pw has the
water tank 68 for storing mist water. This water tank 68 is
arranged under the floor of the passenger compartment. More
specifically, the water tank 68 of the front side air conditioning
unit 52f is arranged in a corner portion where the center side
member 32 and the cross member 36e intersect. In the corner
portion, a triangular bracket 104 having the substantial shape of a
triangle is provided with one side thereof welded to the bottom
surface of the center side member 32 and another side thereof
welded to the bottom surface of the cross member 36e. The water
tank 68 of the front side air conditioning unit 52f is placed and
fixed on the triangular bracket 104. Similarly, the water tank 68
of the rear side air conditioning unit 52r is arranged in a corner
portion where the center side member 32 and the cross member 36g
intersect. A triangular bracket 104 is also provided in this corner
portion, and the water tank 68 is placed and fixed on the
triangular bracket 104.
[0106] The main battery 106 that supplies power to the power unit
114 is also arranged under the floor of the vehicle. The main
battery 106 has a flat shape that is long in the vehicle forward
and rearward direction. The thickness (height dimension) of the
main battery 106 is substantially the same as the height dimension
of the center side member 32. The main battery 106 is arranged to
be separated from the cross member 36e and the cross member 36g
with an appropriate gap therebetween. The water tank 68 is disposed
in the gap between the main battery 106 and the cross members 36e
and 36g. That is, in this example, the water tank 68 is arranged
using a dead space generated in front of and behind the main
battery 106. In order to enable such an arrangement, the thickness
(height dimension) of the water tank 68 is set to be substantially
the same as the thickness (height dimension) of the main battery
106.
[0107] As can be clearly seen in FIG. 15, the two water tanks 68
are both arranged on one side in the vehicle width direction (the
right side in this example). In this example, the water supply port
72 is also arranged on one side in the vehicle width direction (the
right side in this example), as in the case of the two water tanks
68. With this configuration, the path of the water supply hose 76d
communicating the one water supply port 72 with the two water tanks
68 can be made substantially linear (see FIG. 8), so that the water
supply hose 76d can be routed simply. Furthermore, in this example,
the two water tanks 68 are provided on the right side to be on the
side opposite to the door 22 of the vehicle 10 provided on the left
side. In other words, with the relatively heavy water tanks 68
arranged on the side opposite to the door 22, it is possible to
effectively reduce the shaking of the vehicle caused by the
passengers getting on and off. Furthermore, arranging the heavy
water tanks 68 under the floor lowers the center of gravity of the
vehicle 10, resulting in further improved stability of the vehicle
10. With the water supply port 72 further disposed on the side
opposite to the door 22, the feet of the passengers getting on and
off and the like can be more effectively prevented from coming into
contact with the water supply port 72.
[0108] Next, an arrangement of the water supply port 72 will be
described with reference to FIG. 16. FIG. 16 is a schematic view
illustrating a periphery of the water supply port 72 as viewed from
the front. The rocker 48 is provided at the lower end of the side
surface of the vehicle 10 and extends in the vehicle forward and
rearward direction to support both ends of the floor panel 100 in
the vehicle width direction from below. The water supply hose 76d
connecting the water supply port 72 and the water tank 68 to each
other passes through a space immediately outside the rocker 48. The
water supply port 72 is formed of, for example, a substantially
cylindrical fluid coupling, and is arranged so as to protrude
obliquely downward from the rocker 48.
[0109] The rocker molding 110, which is a resin member for hiding
the rocker 48 for the sake of improved appearance, is provided
further on the outer side than the rocker 48 in the vehicle width
direction. As illustrated in FIG. 16, the rocker molding 110 is a
panel member having a substantially L-shaped cross section that
extends outward in the horizontal direction and then downward. The
water supply port 72 has a lower end positioned at the same level
as or slightly higher than the lower end of the rocker molding 110.
Thus, the water supply port 72 is hidden behind the rocker molding
110 so as not to be viewable from the outer side of the vehicle 10.
Meanwhile, a space large enough to enable an external water hose to
pass therethrough is provided below the rocker molding 110. Thus,
this water hose can be smoothly connected to the water supply port
72.
<Other Configurations>
[0110] As is clear from the above description, in the air
conditioner 50 disclosed in this specification, water is sprayed to
a section immediately before the compressor 60, so that the cooling
efficiency can be further improved. Furthermore, the air
conditioning units 52 are dispersedly arranged in the ceiling part
Pt, the lower part Pb, and the water supply part Pw, so that the
degree of design freedom of the vehicle can be improved. It should
be noted that the configuration described above is merely an
example, and other configurations may be modified as appropriate so
long as the evaporator 54 and the blower fan 56 are provided in the
ceiling portion and the condensers 62 are provided in the lower
portion of the vehicle. For example, in this example, a
substantially box-shaped autonomous vehicle traveling at a low
speed is described as an example, but the air conditioner 50
disclosed in this example may be installed in other types of
vehicles. Furthermore, the compressor 60 may be arranged in the
ceiling space 88 instead of in the accommodation space 94 in the
lower portion of the vehicle. Similarly, the expansion valve 58 may
be provided in the accommodation space 94 or the first pillar 42
instead of in the ceiling space 88.
REFERENCE SIGNS LIST
[0111] 10 Vehicle [0112] 12 Main frame [0113] 13 Window [0114] 14
Lamp arrangement portion [0115] 15 Signal lamp [0116] 16 Body
[0117] 18 Front wheel [0118] 20 Rear wheel [0119] 22 Door [0120]
24f Front grill [0121] 24r Rear grill [0122] 26 Operation panel
[0123] 28 Seat [0124] 30 Front side member [0125] 32 Center side
member [0126] 34 Rear side member [0127] 36a to 36k Cross member
[0128] 38 Kick member [0129] 40 Suspension tower [0130] 42 First
pillar [0131] 44 Second pillar [0132] 46 Rail [0133] 48 Rocker
[0134] 50 Air conditioner [0135] 51 Control unit [0136] 52f Front
side air conditioning unit [0137] 52r Rear side air conditioning
unit [0138] 54 Evaporator [0139] 56 Blower fan [0140] 58 Expansion
valve [0141] 60 Compressor [0142] 62 Condenser [0143] 64 Electric
fan [0144] 66 Spray nozzle [0145] 68 Water tank [0146] 69 Water
pump [0147] 70 Level sensor [0148] 72 Water supply port [0149] 74
Coolant pipe [0150] 76a Output hose [0151] 76b Drain hose [0152]
76c Rainwater hose [0153] 76d Water supply hose [0154] 78 Rainwater
collection port [0155] 79 Ceiling assembly [0156] 80 Radiator
[0157] 82, 83 Duct [0158] 84 Ceiling exterior panel [0159] 86
Ceiling interior panel [0160] 88 Ceiling space [0161] 90
Ventilation port [0162] 92 Heat insulating sheet [0163] 94f Front
side accommodation space [0164] 94r Rear side accommodation space
[0165] 99 Support frame [0166] 100 Floor panel [0167] 104
Triangular bracket [0168] 106 Main battery [0169] 108 Support plate
[0170] 110 Rocker molding [0171] 112 Motor unit [0172] 114 Power
unit [0173] 116 Power control unit (PCU) [0174] 120 Nozzle bracket
[0175] 130 Peripheral information sensor [0176] Pb Lower part
[0177] Pc Center part [0178] Pf Front part [0179] Pr Rear part
[0180] Pt Ceiling part [0181] Pw Water supply part
* * * * *